Individual Bolognese Pot Pies

 

What do you do when you have some lovely leftover meat ragu from a Spaghetti Bolognese dinner? Why you bake them into dainty little pot pies!


Spaghetti Bolognese is a favourite at home but doesn't get made often because we don't eat mutton that often and plus its best to have during the winter when you don't mind a slightly heavier meal. I usually make use my tried and tested Bolognese recipe, but this time I tried Emeril Lagasse's recipe with a few changes and it was really delicious!

I then had quite a bit of the ragu leftover so a couple of evenings later, I reduced it down to a thicker consistency and add some peas as well. Portioned it out into small ramekins (use bigger ones for single potions) and then rolled out some puff pastry to cover it. Baked it for about 15 minutes and voila! dinner was ready. I made some small cut out shapes of the pastry to decorate, but its really not necessary.

 

For the Ragu Sauce 

Olive oil - 2 tsp

Mutton mince - 300gm

Bacon - 4 strips chopped

4 chorizo sausages - chopped finely or crumbled

Onions - 2 medium, chopped

Carrots - 1 medium, diced

Tomatoes - 5 pureed 

Tomato puree - 1/4 cup

1 stock cube (chicken or beef) dissolved in 300ml of water

Red wine - 3/4 cup

Garlic - 2 cloves, chopped finely

 Bay leaves - 2

Freshly crushed black pepper - 1/2 tsp

Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp

Cumin powder - 1/2 tsp

Dried oregano - 1 tsp

Cinnamon powder - 1/2 tsp

Sugar - 1 tsp

Milk - 1/4 cup 

Cooked Spaghetti - 300gms

Parmesan powder - to serve

1. Take a pan and heat the olive oil in it. Add the bacon and cook till browned and fat is rendered - about 3-4 minutes.

2. Stir in the onions and carrots and cook for 4 minutes till soft. 

3. Next add the bay leaves, garlic, salt, pepper, red chilli powder, cumin powder, cinnamon powder and oregano and saute for a minute.

4. Add the mutton mince and finely chopped sausages and fry for 5 minutes till they are browned.

5. Add the red wine and cook for 3 minutes breaking up any browned bits sticking to the pan.

6. Add both the purees, the stock and sugar and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer covered till the sauce is thickened - about an hour and fifteen minutes. 

7. Add the milk and check the salt. Stir well and remove from heat and keep warm. Serve over cooked spaghetti sprinkled with parmesan powder for Spaghetti Bolognese.

 

For the pot pies:

Peas - 1/4 cup

Puff pastry - one sheet for the entire quantity or 1/2 or 1/4 if only working with leftover sauce

Egg - 1, beaten with 1 tbsp water

- add the peas and continue cooking for another half hour till the sauce is much thicker in consistency.

- Spoon into individual ramekins leaving about half an inch at the top for the pastry

- Roll out puff pastry on a floured surface and cut out circles which will fit inside the ramekins (I didn't tuck the pastry inside which I will do next time)

- Brush the pastry with the egg wash and cover the ramekins tucking in the edges.

- Make slits on top of the pastry to vent. You can decorate by cutting small shapes with cookie cutters from the pastry bits left over and then just pressing down lightly over the top of the pastry cover.

- Bake in a pre heated oven at 200C for 15 minutes or till the top is golden brown and flaky.

Insalata Caprese

This is a beautiful salad - Toninos on M G Road makes a lovely one - this is the first time I made it at home. Simple and delicious. Tomatoes, Mozarella Cheese, crushed pepper, salt, extra virgin olive oil and parsley (should have been basil leaves but didn't find any). Less than 5 ingredients to Nirvana

Basically, just slice and layer the tomatoes and the mozarella and then drizzle the olive oil, season and garnish with herbs. The important thing is to use really fresh and good quality ingredients - so the tomatoes should be nice and juicy, some nice mozarella and extra virgin olive oil.

Restaurant Style Biryani/Thali "Sideish"

This was the beautiful "sideish" which went with the rava idlis in my last post. The food blogging world is such a boon to foodies like me - you think of a remembered taste, an imagined flavour, a cherished dish and you can find out how to recreate it in your home. That weekend, I didn't want to make the usual sambar to go with the idlis, nor a kurma - which is usually my favourite. I wanted something more tangy and spicy - not a tomato chutney, can't drown the idlis in it! Puli Kozhambu is too fiery to have first thing in the morning, unless it has already been made a day before and has had some time to mellow.

With father and daughter out swimming, I had all the time to ponder such earth shattering issues on a Saturday morning. I switched on my laptop and started looking at some of my favourite blogs for inspiration. And I found it on Sailu's Kitchen - a recipe for the accompaniment to biryani which is served in restaurants. Its amazing that she has gone to the trouble to recreate this dish which is served in small portions (but one can ask for refills) in biryani joints and even more amazing that she has got it spot on!

I didn't add the thick coconut milk in the original recipe because I didn't want it too creamy (and well I didn't think the joints I had eaten at, had bothered to splurge on coconut milk!). It was still a very beautiful, slightly creamy gravy with just the right amount of spice and the tangy flavour of tomatoes finishing it. Once I made it I realised that this was also the dish which is served in small quantities with "NV meals" in small Chettinad style joints in Chennai - and which we end up asking for refills. We recently had lunch for two consecutive Sundays at Gunpowder - that amazing restaurant in Delhi which serves authentic Kerala cuisine at reasonable prices, such a rarity!-and the accompaniment served with the kotthu paratha was something we ate with our appams and rice as well! I think it something about the combination of whole spices, coconut, poppy seeds and tomatoes that does the trick.

This dish is a keeper - as my husband said appreciatively - write this one down!! We couldn't get enough of it and kept slurping it up long after the idlis were done with.

Recipe for Restaurant Style Biryani/Thali "Sideish" - from Sailu's Blog. This dish goes to the latest edition of Nupur's Blog Bites event - BB6 Potluck

P.S - I have received quite a few emails asking me to post the recipe I used (without coconut milk) so I am posting this here. Also, some people were not able to check the link included above.

Recipe

2 onions, sliced
3 medium tomatoes, in 4 pieces

Publish Post

Dry roast and grind:
poppy seeds (khus khus) - 1 tsp
2-3 cashewnuts
1/4 cup grated coconut

Grind to a paste: (or crush in mortar)
1 " ginger piece
3 green chillies
4 garlic cloves

1 tsp red chilli powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder (dhania)
1/4 tsp turmerice powder (haldi)
1/4 tsp cumin powder (jeera)
pinch of garam masala powder

1tbsp oil
curry leaves
1 cinnamon stick
3 cloves
2 cardamom pods (elaichi)

Method:
1 Heat oil in a pan and add cloves, cinnamon,curry leaves and cardamom. When they change colour (about 2 minutes) add onions and fry till transparent.
2.Add the ginger, garlic and green chilli paste, fry for 2-3 minutes. Add red chilli powder, turmeric,coriander and cumin powders and mix well.
3. Add the chopped tomatoes and fry for 3 minutes.
4. Put in the coconut-cashew paste and fry for 5 minutes on a low flame, stirring from time to time.
5. Add salt, 2 cups of water and bring to boil; lower flame and simmer for 10-15 minutes and turns creamy. Remove from flame and serve warm.

The Whole Enchilada

Tex-Mex is quite the favourite with most people and the same is true for us. We first sampled the fare at Chennai's Don Pepe restaurant and it was finger lickin' good! The quality was consistent and the taste was just fabulous.

Its been a couple of years now since we moved to Delhi but the only two places that I have had Tex Mex is at Sanchos in South Extension- average at best - and Rodeo in Gurgaon - terrible! . Amigos touts itself as a fine dining (read expensive) Mexican restaurant but I haven't eaten there yet (frankly the concept of Mexican fine dining doesn't really make much sense to me); we did go one night for a promotional event but it was so crowded and noisy that we fled and took refuge at the Steakhouse Grill next door.

One afternoon last month, we hopped across to a mall in Noida to check out an electronics store and since it was almost lunch time decided to have a quick lunch at TGIF. Now, its been a long time since I have eaten at TGIF and the last thing I remember is that the food was usually good whenever we had eaten there. We decided to order from their Tex Mex menu and chose the Chimichangas and Tacos (both dishes were to be served with black beans on the side). When the food came we were taken aback.

The tacos were cold and stuffed with some rubbery batter fried chicken; the chimichangas were cold too and had a smear of congealed cheese on top. But what really annoyed me was that the "black beans" which was served to us was nothing but black lentils!!! When I protested to the serving staff, the person in charge insisted that they were black beans and even brought the uncooked version for us to check - that really sealed the deal because they were so obviously black lentils! I was really annoyed by then and sent the dish back and we left really soon.

I did get a call from the manager the next day (in response to an email from me) offering us a meal on the house at our convenience and I thanked him for atleast responding. But I was disappointed that a well known chain of restaurants would attempt to pass off something as generic as lentils as black beans! I mean do people think that the customer of today doesn't know much about international food? Or that she won't bother about what she is being served. And we are not talking about a cheap joint here, but one where a meal for two won't cost anything less than Rs. 1,500.

Which is how I came about cooking enchiladas at home. Helped by the fact that I found a pack of burritos and enchilada sauce in the local "gourmet" store. I have made sauce for enchiladas from scratch before and it really isn't difficult but this time I went with some outside help because I was pressed for time. (you can increase the quantity of chopped tomatoes and add a cup of salsa)

I did two fillings one with chicken and the other with vegetables and tofu. I added kidney beans (rajma) to the sauce and this turned out as one satisfying dinner. DH in fact asked whether he could have a third portion - sheer greed considering each one was so filling!!

Enchiladas

Boneless Chicken - 200gm, marinated with lemon juice and salt) OR
Tofu - 200gm, cut into cubes and marinated with lemon juice & salt

Mexican seasoning - 1/2 tsp
1 tsp oil
Bell pepper - 1, sliced thinly

Onion - 1 chopped
Garlic - 2 cloves minced
3 tomatoes - peeled and chopped
red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp
cumin powder - 1/2 tsp
green chillies - 1-2 chopped
1 tin enchilada sauce

Kidney beans - 1 cup, soaked overnight and cooked till soft (reserve water)
Ice berg lettuce, washed
1 tbsp oil

1 cup grated mozarella cheese (jack cheese is best if you have it available)

1. Heat oil in a pan and saute the onion, green chillies and garlic till the onion is translucent.
2. Add the chopped tomatoes and saute till pulpy, add the red chilli powder, cumin powder, salt and saute for 3 minutes
3. Add 1/2 the tin of enchilada sauce and cooked kidney beans (rajma); pour in about 1/2 cup to 1 cup of the the reserved water and bring to boil.
4. Reduce flame, cover and cook for about 10-12 minutes till the sauce reduces to as thick consistency. Cool
5. Meanwhile, cook the marinated chicken and shred it (I usually pressure cook it for 5 minutes).
6. Heat 1 tsp oil in another pan and saute the shredded chicken or cubed tofu along with the sliced bell peppers for about 5 minutes on high; add the mexican seasoning to this and some salt if needed. Remove and cool.
7. Pre heat the oven to 180 C, grease the bottom of an oven proof dish with oil and pour about 1/2 of the remaining enchilada sauce on the bottom.
8. Microwave the tortillas for about 20 seconds on each side till they are just soft.
9. Spoon the kidney bean enchilada sauce on the centre of each tortilla, top with the shredded chicken or tofu and roll. Secure with a toothpick and place seam side down on the prepared dish.
10. Once all the tortillas are prepared (filling should be enough for 6-7) pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the tortillas. Sprinkle the grated cheese all over.
11. Bake for 15-20 minutes till the cheese melts and the top browns slightly.
12. Serve immediately with lettuce on the side.

Tomato and Sweet Corn Clafoutis

I am always looking for one pot dishes, preferably one which can be baked and thus "cook itself". In this direction, I have tried crustless quiches, frittatas . These are perfect for a late Sunday brunch or even a small evening meal at the end of a long day. While looking for some more such recipes which fitted my baked, one pot criteria, I came across Clafoutis.

Clafoutis or clafouti is a dessert - custard with fruit in its simplest form - which originated in France. The fruit of choice is usually cherries but when not in season is replaced with other fruits like peaches, pears, bluberries and the like. It is a simple way to consume summer fruits with some heavy cream, eggs and sugar and a very non fussy dessert which doesn't smother the fresh taste of the fruits.

Since I don't have such a strong sweet tooth, my thoughts wandered to making this a savoury dish - a quick look around and I found that I wasn't the first one with such an idea! In fact, I even stumbled across a rant about the tribe who convert a perfect great dessert into something of an abomination by adding vegetables and extra flour. Well, in my opinion, some of the best recipes have been created because of such experimentation - I'm not going to stop anytime soon, even if I don't produce any path breaking recipes in the process ;).

I made my recipe with the ingredients I had at home - tomatoes, bell peppers and sweet corn - you can used cherry tomatoes and even bacon.

Eggs - 3
Flour - 3-4 tbsp
Cream - 1/2 cup
Milk - 1//2 cup
Feta Cheese - 100 gm crumbled

2 large tomatoes thickly sliced
1 bell pepper - thinly sliced
sweet corn kernels - 1/2 cup

garlic cloves - 2-3
fresh basil leaves - 2 tbsp chopped
salt to taste
crushed pepper - 1 tsp
red chilli flakes - 1/2 tsp
oil - 1 tbsp

1. Preheat the oven to 180C. Heat oil in a pan and add the garlic cloves. After a minute, add the bell peppers and swiftly saute for about 3-4 minutes. Remove.
2. Grease a baking dish and keep aside. Whisk the eggs in a bowl, add the cream, milk, flour, salt chilli flakes and pepper and whisk some more.
3. Pour the custard batter into the greased baking dish and distribute the vegetables (including the sauteed garlic and bell peppers) over the batter till they just sink in. Scatter the chopped basil on top and sprinkle the crumbled feta cheese.
4. Bake for about 40-45 minutes till the custard is just set is just starting to turn golden on top.

Tomato Orange Soup

Remember the time when Tomato Soup was the must-have item on every "fine dining" restaurant menu? - even more popular than the Sweet Corn Soup which was served in every dimly lit, red and gold decorated Chinese restaurant?
Well, I used to have those soups every single time we went out for dinner and my mother used to keep experimenting at home to get the "restaurant taste" so I would have it at home too. I guess she didn't account for the cornflour and mashed potatoes :)

Then there were those terrible versions we got served on the trains every summer vacation when we travelled down South (just tasted it on the Shatabdi last month and apparently Mr Laloo hasn't made a smidgen of difference!). And of course, the instant "packet" soups full of MSG and additives - not sure how much better or worse they are than the canned versions we have started getting from the US of A....

I soon started having tomato soup only at home - so much better and not complicated at all. So when I saw this recipe for a Tomato Orange Soup - it seemed really exotic and a must-try. Not to mention that so many people seemed to endorse it. I adapted it (just couldn't figure out what the baking powder was for!) and it was a delicious twist on the usual tomato soup. Its a light soup, so perfect for warmer weather too - it's become a favourite of mine.

I am sending this soup to Souper Soup Challenge - Volume Three at Running With Tweezers

Tomato Orange Soup

2 tbsp butter
1 onion medium chopped fine
5 tomatoes - blanched, peeled and chopped
1 tsp salt
2 tsp freshly crushed black pepper
1/4 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp dried thyme
Fresh Orange juice from 1 orange
2 tbsp fresh cream whipped

1. Melt butter in a heavy bottomed pan, add onion and saute for 4-5 minutes till transluscent.
2. Add chopped tomatoes, salt and dried thyme, bring to boil and then simmer on a low flame for 15 minutes. Add the crushed pepper and remove from flame.
3. Cool and puree in a mixer. Return to the pan and add the orange juice. Heat gently for a couple of minutes, adjust seasoning and serve with a dash of cream.

Soup and Salad Lunch - Tomato Carrot Soup

I made two soups and a salad for lunch on Janmashtami after a heavy festive breakfast. One of the soups was this creamy Spinach soup and the other one was this delicious tomato carrot soup. The salad was my usual roasted salad with lots of mixed vegetables.

Shredded carrots and peeled tomatoes, cooked along with some herbs and spices and then pureed for a quick, tasty bowl of warm goodness! You can add a small grated potato to this for some thickness. This time though, I went with a small piece of pumpkin - it not only adds texture but also a beautiful orange colour.

Tomato Carrot Soup

3-4 tomatoes, blanched and peeled
(immerse the tomatoes in boiling water for 5 minutes, remove and plunge into cold water. Peel)
2 carrots, peeled and grated
1 onion finely chopped
1 clove garlic minced
1 bay leaf
small piece of pumpkin, peeled and roughly chopped
1/4 tsp red chilli powder
1/2 tsp cumin powder
salt and pepper powder to taste
a sprinkle of mixed dried herbs
oil - 1 tsp

1. Chop the peeled tomatoes. Heat the oil in a heavy bottomed pan, add the bay leaf and garlic.
2. Toss in the chopped onions and saute for 5 minutes till transluscent.
3. Add the grated carrots, chopped pumpkin and tomatoes and saute for about 3-4 minutes.
4. Add the chilli powder, salt and cumin powder and after a minute, add 3-4 cups of water and bring to boil.
5. Reduce flame and simmer covered for about 10-15 minutes till the vegetables are cooked.
6. Cool, remove the bay leaf and puree the mixture. Add a little water if needed and return to the fire. Adjust salt and pepper, put in the mixed herbs and pepper and remove from flame.
7. Serve warm with a crusty bread.

Roasted Pepper and Tomato sandwich - with Bread and Dosai!

I have loved sandwiches ever since I can remember. As a child I was known to ask for a "bread and butter" sandwich when we ate out. I got to taste the amazingly delicious chutney sandwiches made by Subhash sitting on the "katta' outside our college in Mumbai - those squares of bread slathered with Amul butter and green chutney and stuffed with onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, beet and potatoes - what a filling meal for just 5 bucks! Club sandwiches in Gazebo were next, followed by Subway which arrived in India much later. And have you tasted cheese sandwiches made in a "Club" - well they really know how to make one - thick slices of cheddar cheese between soft white bread - none of that wimpy stuff you get on airplanes and in theatres with wafer thin shavings of cheese on dry bread!

Sometimes there is just nothing to beat the taste of a freshly made sandwich for breakfast - it really is a power breakfast! And of course, you can pretty much put whatever you want to into it - which is what really entices me.

This morning I had a loaf of multi grain bread and though it would be perfect for a sandwich for everyone. Boiled two eggs, roasted a capsicum , sliced a tomato and some olives and shredded some cheese and I was all set to go.
The bread sandwiches were moist and juicy and dripping with the flavour of the roasted peppers and mustard. The eggs made for a good protein boost in the morning.

But after making the sandwiches for my husband and my daughter, I decided that so much of fibre wouldn't go down well with my stomach (I don't digest fibre easily). So I mixed up some instant rava dosa batter for myself and stuffed it with the same fillings! Yummy!
I am sending this dosa to Srivalli's Dosa Mela - glad I could make something unique for this Srivalli - your list for your target of 101 dosa varieties is quite inspiring!

You can pretty much use whatever you want - if you don't want the egg replace them with cucumber or sliced boiled potatoes. Put in some green chutney or pesto instead of the mustard and onions if you are upto eating them in the morning.

Roasted Pepper and Tomato Sandwich

Ingredients:

Multigrain Bread - 1 loaf
Filling:
Tomato - 1 big sliced
Eggs - 2 hard boiled, yolks and white sliced separately
Capsicum/Green Pepper - 1 (Roast the pepper on a low flame or under the grill till the skin blackens all over, wrap tightly in a foil paper and leave aside to cool for 10 minutes, unwrap, peel skin, deseed and slice)
Black olives - sliced 5-6
Mustard - 4-5 tbsp
Butter - 1-2 tbsp
Hung Curd - 2 tbsp
Pepper powder - to taste


Low Fat Multi -Grain Bread Sandwich:

1. Cut a 6 " piece of the bread and slice horizontally, leaving the back still attached so that it opens like a book.
2. Spread the hung curd on both sides and fill with 3-4 tomato slices, olive slices, roasted capsicum slices and boiled egg white slices.
3. Drizzle mustard on top and sprinkle pepper powder to taste.
4. Grill for 2 minutes or serve just like that.

Multi Grain Bread Sandwich for kids:

Cut sandwich as above, spread butter or cheese spread on both sides. Fill with tomato slices, roasted capsicum slices and whole egg slices. Shred cheddar cheese all over and drizzle tomato sauce on top. Grill or serve soft.

Instant Rava Dosa Sandwich

Dosa Batter:
1/3 cup - Semolina (sooji/ rava)
1/3 cup - Refined flour (Maida)
1/3 cup - Rice flour
Yoghurt - 1/2 cup whipped with 1 1/2 cups water
Green chillies - 2 chopped fine
Coriander leaves - 2 tbsp chopped
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Salt to taste

1. Mix all ingredients of the dosa batter and keep aside for 5 minutes.
2. Heat a tava and pour the dosa batter (should be thinner than usual dosa batter) from a small cup and let it spread outwards. Do not spread with the back of a ladle as far as possible instead tilting the tava a bit if needed.
3. Drizzle a tsp of oil all around and cook on a medium flame till the edges are brown and lift on their own. Quickly flip with a spatula and cook the other side for a minute on a low flame.
4. Remove onto a plate, browned side down. Fill a strip of the dosa a little away from the edge with tomato slices chopped fine, olive slices, capsicum slices and egg slices and drizzle mustard or green chutney over it.
5. Start rolling the dosa from the filled side to the other side and press together. Slice into rolls with a sharp knife and serve warm.

Rosy Tomato Risotto

I first came across rosematta rice almost a year ago, on Mahanandi, in this post where Indira waxed poetic on this rich, beautiful, unpolished traditional rice from Kerala. I then saw it on Jugalbandi too - used in different recipes , each more beguiling than the other. The fact that both these talented bloggers (three actually) used rosematta to make these lovely idlis piqued my interest even more.

Then this year as part of our resolve to eat more healthily and to make healthier eating a part of our life rather than a diet which would fade away, I decided to try rosematta as an alternative to the white rice we consume. I have been thinking of brown rice for some time, and then thought I might as well try our own traditional rice first.

I bought it and looked wonderingly at those fat pink grains....and I thought to myself, for the first time I won't just cook these and try to eat it as part of our usual meal with a sambar or rice - that could come later when we were on more familiar terms - the first time I would treat it like a guest and make something suitably different and special!

I went over to Jugalbandi for some inspiration....and came across this post where they had one of Ursula Ferrigno's recipes - and there was another one called Risi e Bisi also from the same author.

While following this link from their post, I came across a recipe for tomato risotto which instantly appealed to me. I couldn't resist the plump peas I had just shelled, and added them to this recipe.

Cooking this rice risotto style was a bit longwinded, what with adding the stock one ladle at a time and waiting for it to be absorbed fully before repeating it, stirring it constantly; but I must say that it was completely worth it.

I soaked the rice for an hour before cooking;I omitted the parmesan, since I didn't really envision this as a Western dish, instead wanted to incorporate it as part of an Indian meal.

The white wine is an aberration in an Indian meal, but I could live with that.

I also followed J&B's recommendations to cut down on the fat content in the original recipe.

I made vegetable stock from scratch since I don't get a good quality vegetable stock cube hereabouts.

I served this with grilled aloo tikkis (potato cutlets) and a lovely raita made with grated bottlegourd (ghiya/lauki/sorakkai) and cumin spiced curd. It was a delicious meal and I loved the texture of the rice - firm and flavourful- a completely new experience for us.

The tomato flavour was just right too - not too tangy; and I'm glad I added the peas! The best part for me was the shallots - completely divine plump soft sweet pieces in a mouthful of rice!

This tastes best when eaten immediately, the leftovers I tasted the next day weren't the same.

Rosy Tomato Risotto

Rose matta rice - 1 1/4 cup, soaked for an hour

Vegetable stock - 6 cups - heat up the stock when you are cooking the rice.
To make veg stock from scratch, saute two small chopped onions with a 1 tsp butter, add 1 cup assorted chopped vegetables like potato, carrots,beans, cabbage,pumpkin and saute for 3-4 minutes. Add 1.5 litre water, salt and pepper powder and bring to boil; simmer over medium flame for about 20-25 minutes till the vegetables are well cooked and stock is reduced. Strain the vegetables and use the stock. Vegetables can be lightly sauteed, tempered and eaten separately.

Garlic - 3-4 cloves, crushed

White wine - 1/2 cup

Tomatoes - 6 medium sized, deseeded and roughly chopped

Peas - 1//2 cup

Olive oil - 1 tbsp

Butter - 2 tbsp

Shallots - 8 (I put them whole)

Mint leaves - 1/2 cup torn

salt - to taste

Lots of Freshly crushed pepper

1. Heat the butter and oil in a heavy pan till just warmed, add the shallots and saute for 2-3 minutes, then add the crushed garlic and saute for 1 more minute

2. Drain the soaked rice and add to the pan and if you are using fresh peas then add these also now; fry lightly for about 2 minutes.

3. Pour in the wine and keep stirring till it is absorbed.

4. Add 1 ladle of hot stock and simmer. Stir the rice and wait till the stock is completely absorbed. Repeat this for the next 10 minutes.

5. Now add the chopped tomatoes, mix well. Add the hot stock one ladle at a time as before, waiting for it to be absorbed before adding the next ladle - it will take another 10 -12 minutes for the tomatoes and rice to be cooked. The grains should be tender and plump, but not mushy.

6. Add the mint, salt and crushed pepper and give it a final stir, remove from heat, transfer to a warm serving bowl and cover and keep aside for a couple of minutes.

7. Serve immediately. I chose to make it part of an Indian meal and served it with ghiya raita and aloo tikkis.

Spaghetti and Vegetarian "Meat"balls

Pasta is a favourite at home and both S and I love trying out pasta dishes when we eat out. I have tried making different kinds of pasta and different sauces too……risoni (rice shaped pasta) became one of our favourites till Nilgiris stopped stocking it for some reason.Pasta which looks like rice – can’t be a better thing to appeal to our South Indian sensibilities I guess ;).

Then there’s farfalle, penne and macaroni – in order of preference.
I don’t prefer the baked versions very much, since it usually calls for way more cheese than we should be having, and it becomes too heavy. Lasagne is the one thing that hubby can’t resist though when we eat out and it was his way of checking out if a new place made the grade – don’t get your lasagna right? Don’t even bother again! It’s a different matter that most restaurants in Chennai used to have chicken lasagna on the menu, is that an oxymoron I wonder…..

Spaghetti however, doesn’t get made too often, because I love having a LOT of sauce with it and I usually don’t have that many tomatoes on hand!

On one of those rare occasions when I had everything for the sauce and the spaghetti on the same day ( a cosmic event!), I decided to make a nice sauce with it to go with the spaghetti.

Then I decided to make meatballs – without the mutton, since I don’t cook mutton at home often – make that “at all”! I don’t eat mutton and hubby avoids red meat too. Chicken is my usual substitute but I didn’t feel like eating chicken either that night.

So, then my mind started wandering, which led to some internet searching…..turns out there are so many recipes out there for “meatless meatballs”, my head started spinning!! Apparently people want to make vegetarian meatballs taste exactly like meat. Well, I don’t miss mutton at all considering I wasn’t a big meat eater at any point, so I just wantedto make – well vegetarian dumplings to put into the sauce with my spaghetti!

So, I shut down all the search windows which were bent on confusing my already addled brain and keeping in mind the various things and ingredients used in different recipes, made my own version. I decided to go with silken tofu – first time I would be using it – mushrooms and walnuts.

I was amazed at how well they turned out….the walnuts and the mushrooms gave the tofu a really nice texture and “bite”. It also kept its shape very well, both while frying and in the sauce, so I think thats a great thing - no fussing to keep it from breaking!

Spaghetti and Vegetarian "Meat"balls

Ingredients:
Spaghetti – 250gms

For the sauce:
Tomatoes – ½ kg
Garlic – 5-6 cloves chopped fine
Cumin powder – ¼ tsp
Chilli powder – ½ tsp
Mixed dry herbs – 2 tbsp
Freshly crushed black pepper – 1 tsp
Olive Oil – 1 tbsp
Salt to taste

Vegetarian "Meat"balls:
Silken Tofu – firm – 1 cup crumbled
Walnuts – 2 tbsp finely chopped
Mushrooms – 100 gms cleaned and finely chopped
Whole wheat flour – 1 tbsp
Bread crumbs – ¼ cup
Salt to taste
Oregano – 1 tsp
Cumin powder – ½ tsp
Pepper powder – 1 tsp

Oil – 2 tbsp to shallow fry or 1 tbsp to bake.

Method:
1. Wash tomatoes, microwave with just enough water for 3 minutes on high. Remove, dunk into cold water and peel.
2. Roughly chop the peeled tomatoes and scoop with juices into a vessel
3. Heat olive oil in a pan and add garlic to it, sauté for a minute and then add the tomatoes to the garlic, sauté for 3-4 minutes.
4. Add chilli powder, cumin powder and salt, let it cook covered for about 15 minutes, adding a splash of water in between if needed. It should cook to a thick sauce consistency.
5. Add the mixed herbs and a bit of vegetable stock or water if it is too thick. Add the crushed pepper just before taking off the flame.
6. Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti as per directions on the pack and toss it with a tsp of olive oil and keep warm. Ideally, make the spaghetti just before you are ready to eat, so that it doesn’t dry out.
7. Assemble all the ingredients for the balls in a bowl, except the oil. Mix well and combine till it all comes together, adding just enough bread crumbs as is necessary to bind the balls together.
Check and adjust seasoning. Should make about 10-12 balls.
8. Shallow fry the balls in 2 batches adding a tbsp of oil each time, till they change colour and are brown on all sides. Or bake them in an oven for about 15 minutes at 180 C, rotating them in between so they brown evenly.
9. Add them to the warm sauce and keep aside
10. When ready to serve, plate the warm spaghetti individually and pour some of the warm sauce and meatballs over it.

This dish is going to Presto Pasta Nights, a weekly event hosted by Ruth over here @ Once Upon a Feast.

Salsa

I discovered the magic of Salsa in Chennai of all the places - in the one and only Tex Mex restaurant it has, courtesy the restaurateur Mahadevan. This former professor turned entrepreneur is credited with introducing global cuisine to Chennai in the 90’s when not many people ate out in the first place, let alone try new cuisines.

And almost every one of his restaurants turned out to be a huge success. Including Don Pepe’s Tex Mex which is located on R K Salai (Cathedral Road) surrounded by his other success stories – Hot Breads ( a bakery chain ) and Zara’s - a Spanish Tapas bar which has the distinction of serving up some delicious Tapas style snacks as well as being the only stand alone pub in Chennai worth it’s Tequila.

Well, it’s not strictly a stand alone pub I guess, since it is technically part of a hotel; which it has to be, due to some archaic rules framed to protect us innocent people from being corrupted - which we would if there were pubs dotting the horizon. But if they are tucked inside hotels which are either too shady or too expensive, than we will escape the lure of alcohol and our morality will remain intact. It’s for our own good.
Of course, I’m not sure about the people who consume 19.3 % of 119 million cases of spirits and 9% of 93 million cases of beer each year in Tamil Nadu (info from here) – couldn’t be us you know, since there aren’t any pubs around! Must be those immoral out-of-towners.

On to the salsa at Don Pepe’s – S and I used to shamelessly polish off almost the whole complimentary bowl even before the appetizers arrived! And then ask for refills for the main course. It used to be juicy, freshly made and absolutely delicious. Oh, how I miss that place after moving to Delhi…….
The bottled ones are mostly a vinegary, pureed concoction with more ketchup than tomato in them and hardly fresh. When we bought a packet of taco chips recently, I decided to make my own salsa. I’m so glad we didn’t get the bottled stuff that day in the convenience store, making this fresh was so worth it!

Note:
To the recipe below I also added one roasted red capsicum diced, which I had left over from another recipe and it took the salsa to a whole new level.

I also zapped the diced green pepper in the microwave with a tbsp of water for about a minute just to soften it since I don’t like it too raw.

Some recipes call for the salsa to be pulsed a couple of times in the processor till chunky, but I like it unprocessed.


Salsa


Ingredients:

Tomatoes – 4-5 firm, deseeded and diced (2 cups)
Sweet Corn kernels – ½ cup
Garlic – 2 tbsp minced
Jalapeño peppers – 2 deseeded and chopped

(I substituted with green chillies). You can also have a combination of Jalapeno/chipotle/habanero peppers depending on the heat level you want.

Spring Onions – white part alone, 1 cup chopped fine
Green Pepper – 1 small diced
Cumin powder – 1 tsp
Lemon juice – 2 tbsp
Olive oil – 1 tbsp
Coriander leaves – 1 cup chopped
Dried Oregano / Mixed dried herbs - 1 tbsp
Tabasco sauce – 1 tsp (optional)
Salt and pepper – to taste

Method:
1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Mix together and check seasoning and adjust spice.
2. Let rest for about 10-15 minutes till the flavours mingle and serve with taco chips or nachos. Or on the side with Burritos/Quesadillas/Chimichangas.